The men's peloton strung out single file, negotiating the incline between turn 2 and turn 3.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

Colavita pro Jonathan Page, #22, blazes out of turn 2. Unfortunately for Page, he would hit the deck in turn 5 on the
final lap. Turn 2 is
home to Stool Pigeons, a bar with an outdoor patio right on the course. I took full advantage of $2 Newcastle pints,
laying the
foundation
for an evening chock full of silliness and merriment. That's my wife's margarita glass at the bottom of the frame.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

More turn 2 action. The Colavita rider, #21, is Aaron Olsen; the Outdoorlights.com rider (blue/green kit) may be Diego
Garavito,
who finished 57th.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

Eventual 40th place finisher Rich Harper (Cane Creek), #121, on his way out of turn 2.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

The peloton successfully negotiates turn 2, about an hour into the race, amidst diminishing sunlight. If I had scored a rider
roster I could ID some of these guys, but I didn't so I can't...

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

Pundit ("This race ain't hard, it's just motorpacing. Sitting in is no different than following a truck.") ... heckler ...
raconteur ... cycling lore savant ... rapscallion ... the one and only Jason Darden.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

HealthNet pro Ivan Dominguez, Bank of America Criterium defending champion, second from the right, appears distracted by the
exhortations of the aforementioned Jason Darden. To Ivan's right is Adam Hodges Myerson (Team Nerac.com).

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

Chad Gibson Uncensored was not supposed to stop for a chat at Stool
Pigeons until after the race, but unfortunately Chad DNFed. His team (Outdoorlighting.com), which brought in Zoran Klemencic for last year's event,
secured the services of legendary British sprinter Malcolm
Elliott for this year's edition. Elliott's race ended in the same last lap crash that took out Jonathan Page, Erik
Saunders, Alex Candelario, and several others.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

Chad Gibson's sweet Ridley, post-race.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

This photo is pretty crappy, but the guy riding tailgunner, Darby Harris (Cane Creek), is a friend of mine who fought long and
hard before finally getting shelled about 2/3 of the way through.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

Mark McCormack (Colavita) chats with the media post-race. McCormack delivered Argentinian speedster JJ Haedo to victory and
rolled exultantly across the line in 6th place. I had yet to assume my faux VeloNews persona, so he wasn't talking to me.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

The side of Frankie Andreu's head, showing off his MP3/Oakley combo eyeware. Frankie shared MC duties with the engaging Dave
Towle. Since quite a few riders, both men and women, hit the asphalt that night, Towle was quizzing Frankie about the
calamities which befell him throughout his Grand Tour years. Darden and I wanted to hear the Tour de France boil incident, but
Frankie was keeping silent about that one.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

North Carolina strongman Phil Wikoff (Cane Creek, in case you couldn't guess), scarred but smarter after hitting the deck
early on, finished in 35th place.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

Post-race blowout at Rock Bottom, one block off the race course. Ok, this is when the night got real fuzzy. We were
putting away the booze with Steve Hegg (pictured) and the Team Seasilver guys, and a steady stream of pros, journalists,
and cycling industry members kept joining the scrum.

Jason Darden lays one on Steve Hegg. Evidently, I told Hegg that I was a photographer for BigGayCyclist.com and that this
photo would be featured prominently next month. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

Gord Fraser and the omnipresent Steve Hegg.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

I think at this point in the evening I was claiming to be a VeloNews photographer, and Ivan Dominguez obliged with a fine
profile pose.

08.06.05 : Bank of America Criterium-Charlotte, NC

Shoes of the stars. I have the faintest of memories about this photo. This is Gord Fraser, showing off his
prototype Formula 1 footwear, for a
faux VeloNews photographer (yours truly).